M.L. "Steve" Barnes

Name:	M.L. "Steve" Barnes
Alias(es):
Type:	fanwriter, zine publisher
Fandoms:	Star Trek: TOS
Communities:
Other:
URL:	stories online at Trektales
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M.L. "Steve" Barnes was a Star Trek: TOS fanwriter and zine publisher (as Pandora Press). She passed away June 15, 1985.

"Somehow my life does not seem destined to run down the usual paths. Starting with a long-term marriage, and encompassing activities that included archery, competitive pistol shooting, skiing and breeding and showing purebred dogs, my life more resembles something that would interest our Mr. Sulu with it's variety... I overcame a rather strict, almost Victorian upbringing to acquire the dubious honor of being known among my friends as The Original Dirty Old Broad. This came about as a result of a very pornographic Star Trek story that I wrote for a friend's birthday and wound up reading aloud at a mildly inebriated New Year's Eve party. Star Trek seems to have taken possession of my senses, and although that is not unusual, stressing the sexual side of the show is."

Remembrances

Carrie Brennan and Judith Brownlee both wrote memorials to her in Datazine #37.

"Stevie and Carrie and I all flew to New York City for the first Star Trek convention in 1972. It was a grand adventure. We met so many people that we had only known by name. Devra Langsam was our mentor. I found some original artwork in a raffle and picked up an Alicia Austin portrait of Spock for a song. We had infamous parties in our hotel room which included D.C. Fontana and Hal Clement. We served our cocktail invention, the "Pon Farr." Sunday morning, Stevie got up early to go the the Statue of Liberty. Carrie [was sleeping], but I opened an exhausted eye as she got ready to leave. 'Want to go with me?' she asked. 'Not on your life!' I answered as I turned over and went back to sleep. She came back later with a paperweight in the shape of the building. When we asked her about the view, she replied that visibility was about 12 inches. But she seemed happy to have done the tourist number just the same. That night on the Sunday evening news in New York City, the coverage of the convention began with a long establishing shot of the oil painting of Spock that Stevie had entered in the art show. We were screaming, and Stevie was almost swooning. 'If I died now, I'd be happy,' she exclaimed. I learned after her death... that she considered those days with us and Trekdom the happiest days of her life... "

Works

• Grup
• More Trek Tales (1977)
• A Handful of Snowflakes (1979)
• "Deck 5" ("If plans for my first novel don't interfere. I plan on doing the long-delayed 'Deck 5' zine that I've been promising.I sincerely hope to take up where 'Grup' left off and that the readers where no (wo)man has gone before in at least sexual areas that deal in ST. It will be a quality project in all particulars since I've decided that if I'm going to be an editor, I'm going to edit. So far, I have three pro writers lined up for material. But please, discourage the younger fans from asking me about it. There are hundreds of Trekzines for them, dealing with areas that they will feel comfortable with. 'Deck 5' will not be that kind of publication.")